Nicholas Roosevelt

https://historiek.net/nederlandse-roots-roosevelts/125337/ His 2 eldest sons founded the Oyster-Bay branch, from which Theodore and Eleanor descended and his 2 youngest sons founded the Hyde Park-branch from From which Franklin D. Roosevelt stems.

Nicholas Roosevelt (or Nicholas Van Rosenvelt) was an early member of the Roosevelt family and a prominent Dutch citizen of New Amsterdam (later New York City). He was the first Roosevelt to hold elected office in North America, as an alderman.

He was born in New Amsterdam to Claes Martenzsen Van Rosenvelt, the immigrant ancestor of the Roosevelt family in America, and baptized October 2, 1658 in the Reformed Dutch Church of New Amsterdam. After the early death of his father his care was assigned to the spinster Metje Grevenraat by the leaders of New Amsterdam. By 1680, he had moved to Esopus, near Kingston, New York, another early Dutch settlement in the New Netherlands. There, on April 5, 1680, he signed a petition asking for a minister for Kingston. He married Heyltje Jans Kunst in the Reformed Dutch Church of New York on December 9, 1682. During his time in Esopus, he was a fur trader on friendly terms with the Native Americans.

In 1690, he returned with his family to New York, where he was listed as having the occupation of a "bolter." He was made a freeman on August 23, 1698. Politically active, he was a supporter of the party of Jacob Leisler, who had led an insurrection in 1689 in support of the succession of Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau to the English throne in the Revolution of 1688. Nicholas Roosevelt was an alderman from 1698 to 1701 and again for the West Ward in 1715. He died in New York City on August 30, 1742.

He had ten children, the first four baptized at Esopus and the rest in New York: Jannetie (1683), Margaretta (1685), Nicholaes (1687), Johannes (1689), Elsie (1691), Jacobus (1692), Rachel (1693; died young), Sarah 1696), Rachel (1699), and Isaac (1701; died young). Nicholas was the last common ancestor of the Oyster Bay Roosevelts (including Eleanor and Theodore Roosevelt), founded by his son Johannes, and the Hyde Park Roosevelts (including Franklin Delano Roosevelt), founded by his son Jacobus.

Youth

It was he, when orphaned, who was brought up by METJE GREVENRAET? "Saturday, May 10, 1664. Metje Grevenraat boards the son of Claas Martens dec"*, for 250 guilders per annum."

(there has been considerable study by genealogists as to the role of Metje Grevenraet's foster parenting of the Martens child. • in 1665 : Metje was a 4th rate citizen listed as a resident of Marketfield st. (most probably her brother Isaac Grevenraet's house) See: Affairs and Men of New Amsterdam: In the Time of Governor Peter Stuyvesant ...

By J. Paulding page 103 • appears in The 1667 Tax list of New York as a property owner: " Mattie Greverart " This is undoubtably her as the Grevenraet family owned so much property in the area of Marketfield St.

https://historiek.net/nederlandse-roots-roosevelts/125337/ ".....Iin 1658 geboren zoon Nicholas werd de stamvader van de Roosevelts, zoals de naam al snel werd geschreven. Zijn oudste twee zonen stichtten de Oyster Bay-tak, waarin Theodore en Eleanor werden geboren, de twee jongere zonen de Hyde Park-tak van Franklin. Het Hollandse deel verwaterde:" ]